Dark mode for sites that never shipped one
Many origins still serve a white dashboard at midnight. Site-native dark mode, when it exists, is often incomplete. ForcedSkin’s Dark mode applies your dark marketplace palette to CSS UI on Chromium (Chrome, Edge, Arc) so everyday browsing can stay dim without waiting on each vendor.
This is not a promise to clone every brand’s official night theme. It is a consistent dark surface language across pages. Pair it with a custom website theme if you want a specific contrast, not only generic charcoal.
Why invert-based night mode feels wrong
Full-page invert filters turn photographs into negatives and scramble already-dark apps. ForcedSkin maps backgrounds, text, borders, and controls onto a dark palette and leaves photos, videos, and canvas pixels intact when it can distinguish them from UI.
You still cannot recolor closed Shadow DOM or bitmap-only chrome. For those hostnames, exclude the site rather than stacking another invert extension on top.
- Dark mode = dark palette via CSS mapping
- Light mode is the inverse use case for overly dark sites
- Auto uses local time, light ~06:00–18:00
Auto schedule versus Off versus exclusions
Auto switches between your light and dark palettes using the local clock (light roughly 06:00–18:00). It does not read ambient light sensors. Off disables ForcedSkin everywhere. Exclusions keep selected domains native while Dark still applies elsewhere — better when only a few apps already have excellent night modes.
Adapters on adapters can improve dark mapping on tricky hostnames using forcedskin-adapter-formula/v1. They still will not invent missing images or restyle chrome://.
Dark mode is color, not a reading-mode redesign
ForcedSkin does not strip ads, simplify typography, or change article layout. Navigation keeps working. If a dark palette reduces contrast on a particular control, try another theme on themes or an adapter, not a layout hack.
Engine details: how ForcedSkin works. Category limits: browser theme extension. Data: privacy.
Common questions
Does website dark mode invert images?
No. ForcedSkin aims to preserve photos, videos, and canvas. Invert-the-page extensions are a different technique.
Can I darken Chrome’s own settings page?
No. chrome:// and the Chrome Web Store are not themeable by this extension.
What does Auto do at night?
After the local daytime window (~06:00–18:00) Auto selects your dark palette. It is clock-based, not sunrise astronomy.
The site already has dark mode. Should I use ForcedSkin?
Optional. If native dark mode is better, exclude that site and keep ForcedSkin for the rest of the web.